Stone in the Sky
by StarliteWyrm15
Summary: It is the countdown for survival as the KaibaCorp plane plummets to the earth below. Kaiba defeats Alister in their duel but the plane is about to crash, which could be fatal to both himself and his little brother. But as the Legendary Dragons ascend to aid Kaiba land the plane, Dartz interferes with a surprise of his own.
1. Part 1 Nigh Death

**A/N:** Just wanted to try something a little different based on the concept "what if this happened?". Plus, I'm trying to get my inspiration back for finishing my two multi-chapters. This takes place at the end of the "Flight of Fear"(episode 23) but with a twist. Hope you enjoy and remember I do not accept FLAMES! Also, I'll only type and upload the second part if I see people actually interested in this. I'm thinking this may have been a waste of time, but I do hope to be proven wrong.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own episode 23 of season 4: Flight of Fear. I only own the plot twist of Dartz's interference.

**Part 1: Nigh Death**

XxXxXxXxXx

A titanous, black dragon, known as "The Fang of Critias", had just been summoned to the sky and hovered right above a smaller, light blue dragon, also known as "Blue-eyes White Dragon". The tall, blue-eyed brunette informed he was merging his "Tyrant Wing" trap card with his new dragon to form "Tyrant Burst Dragon". As he said this, the "Tyrant Wing" that he had given to his "Blue-eyes" the turn before disappeared and formed on "Critias", causing his new dragon's wings to expand and glow a bright white. Then the duelist merged his "Blue-eyes" with the "Tyrant Burst Dragon" to then form "Blue-eyes Tyrant Dragon". The new blue-eyed beast snarled as it appeared in front of its owner.

"Now, my 'Blue-eyes'!" The brunette shouted, pointing his forefinger at the three opposing monsters, two "Robot Tokens" and a weird, robotic creature with a few legs, known as "Spell Canceller". "Destroy all three of his monsters!"

Following his master's command, the humongous light blue dragon with glowing white wings, roared and shot out a beam of blue and white mixed light destroying its targets and reducing the rest of their master's 1000 Life Points to zero. The redhead opened his gray eyes and stared in disappointment at the duelist whom just defeated him. "It worked, you win."

The green circle, The Seal of Orichalcos, brought the two duelists back down, from the roof, into the KaibaCorp plane, the circle getting smaller until it was only directly under the red headed duelist. A young boy with long, black hair ran to the losing duelist whom was down on one knee with his head hung low, his eyes staring at the floor.

"Oh no! That thing is going to take his soul, Seto! We have to do something, quick!" But Seto Kaiba only stared down at his opponent, not moving to help like his little brother was adamant about.

Alister looked up in sorrow as the raven-haired boy reached him, the Orichalcos symbol glowing on his forehead. But instead of seeing the younger Kaiba brother, the boy changed to a much younger boy, who looked a little similar to Alister, with short, red hair and gray eyes. As he saw this new kid, Alister asked out loud, "Mikey, is that you?" He then saw the younger version of himself walk up to Mikey and hand him a toy action figure. The boy took it and smiled as Alister said, "It's about time I gave this back to you, bro."

Mikey, still smiling, said, "Thanks Alister."

Alister returned the smile as he responded back, "No sweat."

It was at this moment the seal lit up, sending a green light upwards. Alister grunted, his face contorted in pain, as another light, this one white, shot up from his skull, the latter being his very soul separating from his body. Such is the consequence of losing a duel that the Seal of Orichalcos was played in.

"Alister, no!" Kaiba's younger brother shouted in anguish. No matter what all Alister had put him and his big brother through, he couldn't help but feel bad for Alister. After all, Alister thought he was justified for his actions because of what the Kaibas' stepfather, Gozaburo, had done to Alister's home land and caused the tragic accident of his own little brother, Mikey. The adolescent could only imagine the great lengths his older brother, Seto, would go to had the elder been in Alister's position. He rushed over to Alister's side following the young man collapsing on the ground. He picked up the broken and charred-looking "Dyna Dude" action figure Alister always carried, the one that used to belong to Mikey.

"He's gone… I guess the seal captured him." The young boy thought out loud.

The entire time, up to Alister's unconsciousness, Seto just stood still, not having moved in the slightest, and only staring at Alister, devoid of any emotion. Suddenly, the plane began shaking violently as it began increasing its rapid descent to the planet's surface. Panicked, he called, "Mokuba, wait here for me!"

"Seto—" Mokuba began but his brother was already heading up the stairs to the cockpit.

The elder Kaiba grabbed the yoke(the lever to control the plane's altitude) and began pulling on it. "I'll save him, I won't let my brother get hurt no matter what! Do you hear me Alister? This plane won't crash!" He pulled the yoke towards himself as hard as he could but the plane's nose was still diving straight for the ground.

As soon as he pulled on the lever, however, his duel disk, specifically his deck, glowed a very bright white. Down below, on the surface, Yami Yugi's deck and disk did the exact same thing as Kaiba's, and not too far from him and Téa was Joey and Tristan, a soulless Rex Raptor riding on Joey's back. Joey's disk and deck glowed too, and shot a white light upwards into the sky, a second light from Yami Yugi's disk meeting the light from Joey's. The two lights were joined together with a third light that shot down from the plummeting aircraft.

The lights ascended quickly and changed to reveal the Three Legendary Dragons: The Eye of Timaeus, The Fang of Critias, and The Claw of Hermos. Hermos and Critias flew under the plane's wings while Timaeus grabbed the top of the plane. Kaiba was still pulling with every force he could muster, worry etched on his face as he struggled to get the plane to change its course.

XxXxXxXxXx

Meanwhile, as soon as Alister lost the duel but before the Legendary Dragons brought forth their aid...

A tall man with real long, blue hair and wearing a purple suit was sitting at a long table facing a gigantic screen. The screen displayed a duel on a plane having just ended, and the loser losing his soul to a green circle.

"So," A sinister voice spoke to an empty room. "Alister failed on capturing the soul of one of The Chosen Duelists." He stood up abruptly and made his way to another room adjacent to the one he was in. "But, it's like they say: if you want something done, you have to do it yourself."

Kneeling in the middle of a weird star, the same star-like shape of The Seal of Orichalcos, this new person, who goes by the name of Dartz, put one hand in front of his face, his forefinger pointing straight up while his thumb pointed towards his face, the rest of his fingers curled into his palm. With eyes closed, he opened his mouth and began chanting while beginning to glow a bright green.

"Spirits of the Orichalcos, hear thy servant! Activate the stone resting on the fallen duelist! Have thy seal absorb one more soul, to make up for the fallen one's failure!" _It doesn't really matter who the seal takes next; Seto Kaiba will be either feeding the Great Leviathan, as is his destiny, or he will be left a broken man, too weak to stop me from capturing him, and the others, later. Meh heh hah ha hah ha!_


	2. Part 2: Sacrifice

**A/N:** I just want to thank lalalei for the review! And thank you to anyone else that might have read the first chapter. I know I said I wouldn't post this second chapter without being shown if people are interested but one review is awesome enough!

**WARNING:** You might need a tissue, I sorta felt like crying while writing this. I wouldn't say this classifies as "character death" but some might take it that way. But this story is necessary for another story I'm planning on doing. So, please, please don't hate me.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own episode 23 of season 4: Flight of Fear. I only own the plot twist of Dartz's interference and what follows. I do not own the flashback in this chapter.

**Part 2: Sacrifice**

XxXxXxXxXx

Present time, when the Legendary Dragons appeared...

Timaeus had just grabbed the top of the plane, assisting the panicked, yet determined, blue-eyed CEO in landing his own private aircraft to safety. The plane's altitude began to rise slightly and then, began to slow down, albeit just a little bit, as Hermos and Critias kept their positions under the wings.

However, just as relief began to overtake the teenage CEO of KaibaCorp., the cockpit began to be bathed in a soft, green glow.

XxXxXxXxXx

"Pharaoh, look! Those dragons are trying to save that airplane!"

On the surface, two figures were staring up at the sky watching a fast approaching jet diving straight for a nearby lake. The girl with shoulder length brown hair was pointing at the plane, directing her companion where to look. The teen next to her had spiky black and magenta hair with blonde bangs that streaked upwards like lightning. His crimson eyes followed his friend's index finger to the sky.

"Look, Téa, that light is... it's the same light from the seal Raphael gave me to play!" _I will never forgive myself for playing that accursed thing! If I hadn't done that, Yugi would... still..._

"What's happening with those dragons?" Téa asked, interrupting Yami Yugi's thoughts. As the green light enshrouded the entire jet, the dragons were knocked back away from the plane by an unseen force. They roared what sounded like cries of anguish.

"It would appear that the seal is not allowing them to intervene." Yami observed grimly. _This is not good... If the seal does not disappear soon, that plane is going to crash, causing serious injuries or... or worse._

XxXxXxXxXx

"Seto!" Came a frightful cry from the body of the fuselage.

_What now?!_ Immediately, Kaiba about faced and sprinted back down the stairs, back to the main section where his little brother, Mokuba, was staring in shock and fear at the prone Alister several feet away. Around the still teen's neck was a green stone hanging from a rope. The stone was glowing a very bright green causing the rest of the room to be filled with its glow, the same soft glow that engulfed the cockpit.

"Mokuba!" Upon hearing his name, the small boy turned around to see his older brother dashing for him. "Get back, NOW!" Before the child could react, Seto had stepped in front of him, straightening himself into a protective stance. Mokuba began to back up slowly, Seto backing up also but staying in front of his brother. They backed up until Mokuba felt the cool wall against his back. He was about to step to the side to make a run for it when the glow faded into nothingness. Suddenly, much to the brother's surprise, the seal from the earlier duel emitted from the stone and glided across the floor, straight for them! Kaiba felt his blood freeze and the new turn of events had him in a state of shock that he could not process the full extent of what was happening. He just froze in place, staring at the slowly approaching seal.

_But how? How is this possible? No one played the card to summon that thing. Alister is still unconscious, and it's as if... No, it's not possible! This thing just can't have a mind of its own!_

To call the "thing" by its technical term, "seal", would be to acknowledge its very existence. Kaiba has never believed in magic, or anything mystical for that matter, and the seal card, "The Seal of Orichalcos", was just some magic trick, an illusion of sorts... right?

"Uh, Seto, what do we do now?" A horrified Mokuba asked, his child-like, violet-gray eyes staring up at his older brother's back, the one who has always protected him. The elder Kaiba said nothing, hands balled into fists at his sides, his teeth clenched, and his deep cerulean eyes wide with shock as he braced himself for the inevitable entrapment.

XxXxXxXxXx

Meanwhile, Dartz had settled back in front of his large screen, watching the events taking place on the KaibaCorp. aircraft. The corners of his mouth turned upwards into a sinister smile.

"Well, it looks like 'The Chosen Duelist' is going to be the next soul to feed the Great Beast. Kaiba's soul will increase the Leviathan's strength much more than that of any other soul I have ever captured!"

All of a sudden, Dartz's eyes, which consisted of one emerald and the other golden, widened in mock surprise. The end result had crossed his mind but what would be the path to it… now that was something he had no idea of.

XxXxXxXxXx

The seal was closing in on the adolescents quickly and the plane was shaking much more violently, signifying they were just shy away of crashing. The Legendary Dragons continued to try to grab the plane but the force of the seal's "protective" dome knocked them back each time a claw, a wing, even a scale barely grazed the seal.

Seto, nor Mokuba, had moved, too mesmerized by the approaching ring. But the jet's rumbling shook Kaiba out of his trance.

_Damnit, I can't let Mokuba get trapped in this._ The teenage CEO turned his head slightly so he could see his precious, little brother, the one person who meant the entire world to him, in his peripheral vision. _I need to get him out of the way, RIGHT NOW!_

As the elder was turning to do what his mind set in stone, he heard a familiar worried, yet confident, voice call out to him.

"Seto, NOOO!" Kaiba grunted as he was immediately shoved to the side, his feet just a hair from touching the object of his fate. He said nothing but inside, his emotions were on the most wild rollercoaster he had ever rode.

_What's going on?!_ Swiftly turning back around, Seto's oceanic, stormy eyes focused intensely, the wild emotions in his mind evident, on the small, green circle that was now nestled underneath…

"Mokubaaa!" The CEO made a mad dash towards the raven-haired child, whose own face showed a mix of sadness and… wait, is that content? _No…_ It suddenly dawned on him what just occurred. _It's determination, confidence. Mokuba just… No! Not again!_

A painful memory rose up from the depths of Kaiba's mind.

_He was facing a five-headed dragon, each head a different color, representing a different element. Standing near his side, but not too close, was his forever arch rival, Yugi Muto(but it was actually Yami Yugi). They each had a dragon of their own floating in front of them, staring daggers at the enemy. Between the two rivaling duelists stood a very scared-stiff Mokuba. A deep, traitorous voice boomed across the digital room the three humans were trapped in. _

_"You'll win nothing! Two of your crew are already gone and now, we'll make it three!" The middle dragon head opened its mouth shooting out a yellow blast of electricity at an unknown target._

_"Kaiba, call out your ultimate dragon!" Yami demanded of the taller boy a couple of feet away._

_"Silence!" Kaiba snapped._

_"Seto, it's not your dragon he's attacking!" Kaiba felt himself being shoved with such strong force as a bright, yellow blast was headed straight for him!_

_"It's you!" The blast struck a figure, and Seto knew just who that figure was. _

_"No! Mokuba!" He had turned just in time to see the younger Kaiba falling towards him._

_"Seto…" Came the weak voice just before Mokuba digitized through Seto's outstretched arms. Kaiba just stood in complete shock and rooted to the spot, his arms still reaching out in front of his torso, palms facing upwards, as if he was holding an invisible figure._

_"No! No!" The usual strong, proud, and confident CEO of KaibaCorp. fell to his knees in despair. _

_"Mokubaaaaa!!!"_

Kaiba snapped out of the memory and peered desperately at his dear brother. He just could not believe this was happening a second time, and within only a year since the first.

Mokuba faced his brother confidently, but his violet-gray orbs told the older brother he was pleading for forgiveness. His calm demeanor, however, did not last. He began tearing up, too weak to try and stop them.

"B-Big Brother, I-I am s-so sorry. I-it's up t-to y-you. I—". But the boy was unable to finish his sentence as the seal's light shot upwards, just like with Alister. A smaller, white light immediately followed, the green circle vanishing in thin air. Mokuba's lifeless body began falling but Seto was right there to catch him in his arms.

The older teen threw his head back in rage and shouted his brother's name like it was going to put the child's soul back where it belonged.

"MOKUBA!!!!"

He held the small boy's head to his own chest, and lowered his head so that his bangs covered his blazing eyes. If anyone stood in Kaiba's proximity, they might feel the heat radiating from the teen shaking in fury. He stayed like that for what seemed like a long time when there was a violent jolt against the plane, causing the young president to fall back a ways, still clutching the unresponsive boy very tightly.

_No, I… I failed! I failed Mokuba… again! And now this plane will crash!_ Distraught blue eyes looked upwards, to the ceiling of his aircraft, but not really seeing anything. _Forgive me, little brother. Please forgive me._


	3. Part 3: Vowing Vengeance

**A/N:** This is the final chapter of "Stone in the Sky". Stay tuned for the upcoming sequel, "The Fate of the Knights" (though the title might change, and if it does then, this note will be edited to reflect the update). And, again, a big thank you to lalalei for the encouraging and supportive reviews! You rock!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!, nor do I own episode 23 of season 4: Flight of Fear. I only own the plot twist of Dartz's interference and what follows except for certain dialogue that actually comes from the episode. I've only altered the scenes they are spoken in.

**Part 3: Vowing Vengeance**

XxXxXxXxXx

Back when the green light around the rapid, plummeting jetliner disappeared…

"Now dere's someding you don't see every day." A Brooklyn accent filled Yami's and Téa's ears, causing them to look down from the sky and to their left. Two tall boys, one with disheveled blonde hair and the other had brown hair spiked up to a point on his forehead, watched the ship stricken with worry and fear.

"Joey! Tristan!" Téa called, causing said teens to look back to her and her companion, a teen with spiked hair and lightning-shaped, blonde bangs.

The Brooklyn blonde, Joey, spoke first. "It's Téa!"

"And Yugi!" Tristan echoed.

Yami remained silent, his narrowed gaze returning to the nosediving aircraft. "Guys," He stated glumly. "Look."

Everyone else turned back to the overcast sky. Gasps elicited from everyone, except Yami. They couldn't believe their eyes!

The dragons were finally able to grasp the plane but it was too late. Both of the metal wings began slicing through trees as the nose of the plane was a few minutes from crashing into the lake. Critias let out a loud, ear-shattering roar as he grabbed the tip of the nose, determined to slow down the flying machine. Timaeus was back to trying to lift the top of the fuselage while Hermos grabbed the tail in an effort to add extra strength to aid his comrades.

But, unfortunately, it was no use. Critias was plunged into the lake, the plane's nose submerging. The dragon shrieked one last time before it faded away as if it was only a mere hologram. Timaeus and Hermos cried out as well before they, too, vanished into thin air. A fire sparked at the front end of the plane, smoke billowing upwards.

The gang sprinted towards the wreckage when Téa halted. Yami noticed this and stopped too. "Téa? What is it?"

"That's one of Kaiba's planes." She exclaimed but only loud enough for Yami to hear. Suddenly, she shot forward like a rocket, passing Joey and Tristan who were still running to their destination. The boys cried out to her to wait but either she didn't hear them, as she was in the water now, or she chose to ignore them. _I have to help whoever all is in there!_

The three males ran into the water and swam to where Téa was, she was floating by the side door of the plane. As they reached her they could hear grunting and slamming. Joey stared dumbfounded for a moment before realization dawned on him.

"Hey, someone is still alive in dere!" Tristan gave him an incredulous sideway glance but he said nothing as he and Joey prepared to bang against the door with their shoulders. Suddenly, the gold pyramid resting around Yami's neck glowed and the "Eye of Udjat" appeared on Yami's forehead.

He gave a surprised gasp, the others turning to look at him curiously. "This isn't just one of Kaiba's planes. Kaiba himself is in there!"

More gasps followed and Joey and Tristan began slamming harder. They wondered why they weren't making any progress with the door, but those thoughts diminished when they finally heard an all too familiar, deep, male voice on the other side.

"It can't be pushed inward you morons! Now, MOVE!" His dark tone suggested he would kill anyone who got in his way. And who could blame him? The smoke was getting bigger, indicating the fire was spreading further inside of the aircraft.

"Speak of the devil." Joey muttered under his breath. The four friends moved back as another slam came from the door and this time there were dents being made. Very soon, Kaiba would have the door opened. But the question was: did he even have time?

After a minute and a half, there was a loud battle-like cry followed by a much louder bang and the door swung open in a dramatic fashion. A few seconds later, a dead weight body was thrown out of the doorway, the figure unceremoniously landing onto Joey. The blonde made an "oof" sound as he struggled to hold himself and the newcomer above the water. Just milliseconds before the fire consumed the entire body of the plane, Kaiba jumped out, cradling a small, still form against his chest. He hit the water hard, going under but made sure to take one hand off the child so he could swim back up, bringing the both of them to the surface.

The gang noticed whom was in Kaiba's arms and the feelings of dread and sorrow filled their hearts. Only Yami could sense what had really happened. And Kaiba's image was not very pretty either. He had scrapes and cuts (a few were bleeding) on one half of his face. His usual brown hair was taking on a black tint from soot that had fallen into it. The boy's face was flawless but he, like his brother and savior, also had some soot mixed on his face and mop of dark hair.

Once they were all back on land, the KaibaCorp. airliner blew up. Everyone stared at the explosion, the crackling flames shining in their eyes as they were lost in their own, individual thoughts. In the distance, a team of a few helicopters were flying towards them.

Kaiba's cold, blue eyes fell onto the prone body he refused to put down, his thoughts on one particular topic: revenge. _I will avenge you, little brother. I will not fail this time._

He glanced to the side to see Joey putting down the young redhead he had thrown at the blonde mutt just a few minutes before. _Alister mentioned he was having help from his 'new family'. I will find them, and once I do, I will make them all pay for what they've done to you, Mokuba! No one disrespects the Kaiba family and gets away with it!_

Téa turned towards Seto Kaiba, her heart breaking at the sight of him. He was standing straight but she could see him slightly quivering. Is he…? No, he can't be crying... could he? But looking at him more closely, she came to the realization that he wasn't crying. In fact, he was furious, more so than she had ever witnessed of the teenage president. There was murder in those cerulean orbs as he continued to stare at the remains of his private jet still burning but slowly being consumed by the crystal clear lake. He held his little brother like it was his only lifeline, the pre-teen boy laying in the older teen's arms "bridal style". Kaiba's left hand was firmly holding the back of Mokuba's head up into his chest, tenderly pressing the kid's cheek against his left ribcage.

_But Mokuba was—no _is _his lifeline. I have to stay positive. That light we saw moments ago probably took Mokuba, and if it did, then there's still a chance to save him. Just like Yugi…_

XxXxXxXx

"Master Kaiba! What happened, Sir?!" A tall man, just a hair shorter than Seto Kaiba, with teal hair and wearing a black suit and black shades, stood gaping at the devastating sights of his CEO and his Vice President, although the latter was in better condition than the former.

"Just start up the engine, Roland."

Roland involuntarily winced at his boss's harsh tone. He knew better not to inquire further. He whirled around and ran back to the chopper that he had travelled in, shouting orders as he went.

Seto Kaiba turned back to the wreckage one last time, silently vowing more vengeance, then walked onward to the helicopter Roland had entered. But he wasn't the only one walking in this direction. He stopped in his tracks but did not turn around.

"Don't you geeks have someone else to annoy?"

"Kaiba, we can't do this without you and you know it. So please, accept your destiny and help us to stop this evil." Yami answered, ignoring his rival's insult.

Kaiba smirked though the "geek squad", as he always called them, could not see his face. But nevertheless, he responded mockingly. "Hmph. If I had a dime for every time you used the word 'destiny', I'd be even richer."

The gang, minus Yami, groaned and Kaiba could just imagine their expressions. His smirk faded and his expression had hardened back into stone as he started walking again.

XxXxXxXxXx

A pair of green and gold eyes sparkled in cruel amusement. While this wasn't what the ancient ruler had wanted exactly, he knew this would make things between him and these "evil ones" (he believed he was the one trying to save the world from evil) that much more interesting, and even more so, _entertaining._

His thoughts were interrupted by someone coming through a speaker somewhere in the room.

"Master Dartz, I've just received word from our business division."

Dartz stood up, prodding the unknown speaker, "Yes, go on."

"The takeover was a success. Congratulations, Master. KaibaCorp. now belongs to you."

Dartz's lips curled into a sinister smirk. _Victory is very nigh._

XxXxXxXxXx

"Roland, you said you had 'terrible news'. So, spill it already." Roland closed his eyes as he contemplated how to convey the new developments to his boss. The trusted right-hand man wasn't exactly sure how to tell Kaiba while in the presence of the ex-world champion's rivals. The former knew this was private business where the chief executive was concerned.

Though wanting so badly to tell them off, to tell them to find their own ride, one look at his treasure's closed eyes and Seto Kaiba knew what he had to do. Annoyed and irate, Kaiba gave the "dweeb patrol" (another one of his insulting nicknames) permission to ride back to Domino City with them.

_Mokuba would have wanted it… That's the only reason I'm doing this. _He had thought as he let the gang on board of his helicopter. They were now in the air, the countryside (and the crashed airliner) behind them a far-off, distance away, making the area appear microscopic.

As Roland finished informing the KaibaCorp. President that Dartz had bought out and taken complete control of KaibaCorp., Kaiba clenched his teeth and his hands balled into fists (Mokuba was laying on the seat beside him, his fragile head resting on the elder Kaiba's lap) and his eyes narrowed.

_Just another thing to add to the list. If this Dartz character is also responsible for that strange, green illusion, then I will make him regret ever messing with me!_

**To be continued in "The Fate of the Knights".**


End file.
